Appointed March 2022 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland
4 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Claudia Cubas earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2005 from the University of St. Thomas in Houston and a Juris Doctor in 2008 from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. From 2018 to 2022, she was the litigation director at the Capital Area Immigrants' Rights (CAIR) Coalition in Washington, D.C., after holding senior program director, program director, supervising attorney, and staff attorney roles there beginning in 2011. From 2009 to 2011, she was an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps legal fellow at the Central American Resource Center.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
618
Completions per year
3,711 total
2.4%
Detained at decision
share of cases
28.4 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
14.5%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
2.5%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 14 appeals — too few
Bond decisions
Custody redetermination (bond) rulings since 2021.
"Granted" means the judge lowered the bond, ordered release on recognizance, or otherwise granted the request.
25%⚠
Bond requests granted
4 bond decisions Too few cases
$5,000
Median bond when set
1 bonds with amounts
0%
Released on own recognizance
This judge 25%
Court average 25.5% · median $10,500
National 41.9% · median $6,500
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
73.1%
536 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
37.5%
299 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
30.8%⚠
13 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
77.8%⚠
9 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
98.1%
52 decisions Moderate
73.1%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 536 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
73.1%
This court
42%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 6% of the 825 judges nationally with enough cases to compare.
Does a lawyer matter here?
Asylum grant rate by whether the person had legal representation.
With a lawyerrepresented · 502 decisions since 2021
75.7%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 34 decisions since 2021
35.3%
Asylum grant rate over time
Each point is that calendar year's grant rate, back to 2015 where the judge was deciding cases — the longer career view. Dashed grey line = current national average (31.8%). Headline rates above use 2021 – today.
Courts where this judge has decided cases
Hearing locations for cases this judge completed since 2021, by number of decisions.
Many judges hear cases from more than one court (detained facilities, video dockets, or reassignments).